Chapter 65 Helena Held
In the Vane library Sarah stood over her laptop with her hands pressed hard against the mahogany desk, staring at the digital map Julian had provided.
The red demolition lines on the screen weren't just data points; they were cutting right through the living room where she had raised Mark and the office where she had spent twenty years building her name.
Alex stood behind her, his face pale and his jaw so tight that the muscles in his neck were visible, and he looked at the blueprint of the massive parking garage that Helena wanted to build over Sarah’s neighborhood.
"She didn't just move the goalposts, she’s trying to wipe the entire playing field so she can show the London board a twenty percent increase in land value," Alex said, and his voice was low, vibrating with a cold, focused anger that made the whiskey glass on the table rattle.
"She’s been buying the neighbors' debt for months, Alex, look at the timestamps on these lien transfers, she was planning this before she even stepped off the plane from London," Sarah said, pointing to the screen, her mind working through the legal implications at lightning speed.
"She used the Harrington Group’s secondary credit line to fund the acquisitions, which means your father is technically the owner of the demolition notices, even if he hasn't seen them yet."
"My mother is going to be furious when she finds out Helena is using the Vane family name to front a slum-clearance project, because if Catherine finds out about this, she’ll have a fresh reason to sue everyone in this room for reputational damage," Alex said, and he started pacing the room, his boots clicking on the marble like a countdown.
"Your mother isn't the problem right now, Alex, the problem is that Helena is hosting the official site visit for the investors tomorrow morning, and once she signs those foundation permits in front of the cameras, the city won't be able to stop the wrecking balls," Sarah told him, and she closed the laptop with a sharp snap that echoed in the quiet library.
"Then we don't give her a chance to sign them, we go to the site, and we show the investors exactly what they’re actually funding," Alex said, stopping his pacing and looking at her with a look of pure, lethal intent.
"We can't just walk in there, we’re blacklisted, Helena has security at every gate and the press will be looking for a reason to call us unstable," Sarah argued, but she was already reaching for her bag, her business brain already calculating the logistics of a counter-strike.
"We don't go as the blacklisted ones, we go as the owners of the land she hasn't bought yet," Alex said, and he pulled a folder from the desk drawer. "She bought the liens on the houses, but she hasn't closed on the community park or the old warehouse on the corner, and those are still held by a private trust that my mother hasn't touched in a decade."
The next morning, the Veridian construction site was a sea of white tents and expensive catering, and Helena was standing on a raised platform in a tailored white suit, holding a silver shovel and smiling for the bank of photographers. She looked like the queen of the city, gesturing toward the blueprints on the giant monitors, telling the London investors about the "modernization" and the "unprecedented growth" her new plan would bring to the district.
Sarah and Alex pulled up to the main gate in Alex’s truck, and the security guards moved to block their path, but Alex didn't even roll down his window, he just held a set of legal injunction papers against the glass until the head of security walked over with a confused look on his face.
"Mr. Harrington, you know you aren't supposed to be here, Ms. Helena was very clear about the restricted access list," the guard said, but his voice lacked conviction when he saw the Harrington seal on the documents.
"Ms. Helena doesn't own the road you’re standing on, so move the barricade before I call the sheriff and have you arrested for blocking a public right-of-way," Alex said, and his voice was so calm and so cold that the guard stepped back and signaled for the gate to open.
They walked onto the platform just as Helena was picking up a pen to sign the ceremonial permit, and the room went dead silent as the cameras turned away from the half sister and toward the half brother. Helena’s smile didn't just fade, it turned into a mask of pure hatred, and she set the pen down on the table with a sharp clatter.
"Alex, this is a private event for the board and the investors, so if you’re here to make another scene, I suggest you leave before I have the police remove you," Helena said, her voice sounding like a hiss.
"I’m not here for a scene, Helena, I’m here to show the gentlemen from London the real Phase Two of your project, the one where you commit multiple counts of zoning fraud and property theft," Alex said, and he didn't wait for her to respond, he just signaled to Julian, who was standing at the back of the tent.
Julian hit a button on his own tablet, and the giant monitors behind Helena flickered, replacing the glossy renderings of the luxury park with the demolition maps and the red lines marking Sarah’s neighborhood for destruction. The investors started whispering, and the lead partner from London stood up, his face turning a deep shade of red as he looked at the plan to bulldoze twenty occupied homes.
"What is the meaning of this, Ms. Harrington? You told us the land was already cleared and the residents had been compensated," the investor said, his voice booming through the tent.
"It’s a glitch, a mistake by a disgruntled employee, Alex is just trying to sabotage the merger because he’s bitter about losing his seat," Helena yelled, looking at the cameras and then at Sarah.
"And you, Sarah, you should be careful about who you align yourself with, because my aunt Catherine is already preparing to testify about your financial history."
"Your aunt can testify all she wants, Helena, but she might be interested to know that you used her personal Vane signature to authorize the predatory liens on these houses," Sarah said, stepping forward and looking Helena right in the eye, her voice steady and full of the authority of a woman who was done being a target. "I’ve spent the last forty-eight hours with the Vane estate lawyers, and they were very surprised to learn that you were using their name to fund a project that involves illegal demolition."
"You’re lying, you don't have the authority to speak for the Vanes," Helena screamed, but her eyes were darting around the room, looking for an exit that wasn't there.
"Actually, she does, because my mother is on her way here right now with the board's chairman," Alex said, and he looked at his watch. "And they aren't here for a ribbon cutting, they’re here for an audit."
Helena looked at the monitors and then at the silent, judging faces of the investors, and she realized that the trap she had set for Sarah had been turned into her own cage. She reached for her phone, her hands shaking, and she looked at Alex with a look of pure, lethal desperation.
"You think you’ve won, but all you’ve done is prove to our father that you’re a traitor to the name," Helena said.
"I'd rather be a traitor to the name than a thief in a suit," Alex replied.
The crowd of investors began to swarm toward the exit, the press was shouting questions, and in the middle of the chaos, Sarah’s phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and saw a text from an unknown number, and when she opened it, her heart stopped in her chest.